Malaysians joke their way through Negeri Sembilan royal row
Por Iman Muttaqin Yusof — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement Malaysia This Week in Asia Lifestyle & Culture Malaysians joke their way through Negeri Sembilan royal row
With two men claiming the throne and no legal exit in sight, commenters suggest nettle-bed endurance tests to end the fight
2 -MIN READ 2 -MIN Listen
Iman Muttaqin Yusof Published: 1:19pm, 23 Sep 2026 Updated: 2:58pm, 23 Sep 2026 Malaysians on social media are offering increasingly outlandish solutions to a months-long royal tussle in Negeri Sembilan state, from making rival claimants sleep on a bed of nettles for a week to putting the entire state through Islamic spiritual healing.
The dispute has left Negeri Sembilan with two men claiming the throne, a state government at odds with the palace and no clear legal route to settle the fight.
One social media user suggested reviving adat perpatih – the customary law of Negeri Sembilan – by subjecting ruler Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir and rival claimant Tunku Nadzaruddin Tuanku Ja’afar to the “stone mattress” test: seven days and seven nights on a stone covered with an intensely itchy variety of nettle, with whoever lasts the longest earning the throne.
“Whoever can endure it becomes [the ruler],” the user wrote, adding that the idea “may look illogical, but it is a fact”.
Select Voice Select Speed 0.8x 0.9x 1.0x 1.1x 1.2x 1.5x 1.75x 00:00 00:00 1x AI-generated voice
